Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
From the first time I read the premise and saw some art for the new comic series Proof, I thought it had the potential to be a winner. Although the first issue hasn’t yet hit the stands, the buzz is it’ll be a blast.
The UFC is back this Saturday with more action. This time its FREE and on SPIKE starting at 9pm.
The main event pits Rampage Jackson against Dan Henderson in a title vs title match. Sounds like the WWE, doesn’t it. Well, I can assure you it’s not. Both men are 6’1″ and about 205 pounds. Their records are fairly similar [Jackson is 27-6, while Henderson is 22-5]. I’ve never seen Henderson fight, but most claim he’s the real deal. I was shocked that Jackson took out Chuck Liddell so easily, so it makes me hesitant to go against him. Still, Henderson is one tough wrestler… ok, I’m going with Henderson.
Matt Hamill brings his 5-0 record against Michael Bispings’ perfect 14-0 streak. These two seemed destined to meet up when they were both contestants on The Ultimate Fighter 3, but Hamill’s injury took him off the show before they could enter the octagon together. Now they’ll determine who the best fighter is… and I’m going with Bispings’ experience.
Micro Cro Cop comes off a devastating knockout loss to face Cheick Kongo. Cro Cop wins or his stock drops off the charts. That being the case, I’m taking Cro Cop.
Am I wrong?
I first learned about Right At Your Door from a positive review in Entertainment Weekly. It didn’t sound like a typical summer flick and I decided that given the opportunity, I’d like to see it. After watching this trailer, I haven’t changed my mind.
Right this minute. This is the coolest thing on the web.
Christopher Mills reminds us that Lee Marvin died 20 years ago today. Marvin had a prolific acting career and made anything he was in better simply with his presence. I’ve always been a Lee Marvin fan, and time hasn’t changed that or his classic screen appearances. So thanks to Chris for today’s reminder and keeping Marvin’s memory alive!
If there’s a bigger Charlie Huston fan than me, he’s probably a related to Charlie. Today Huston’s latest novel, The Shotgun Rule becomes available. If it’s half as good as anything else he’s written, I’m going to love it.
While we’re on the subject of first issues of new comics as we were HERE and HERE, there’s one more that I thought I’d mention. It’s called “Living with the Dead” by Mike Richardson [writer], Ben Stenbeck [artist] and Richard Corben [covers].
It’s a “hilariously funny” look at the life of two slackers who’ve, at least until now, survived a zombie plague. When they discover a beautiful young girl across the way things get really interesting.
I’m giving it a shot since I enjoyed “Shaun of the Dead.”
Another first issue that caught my eye while going through Previews was Crawl Space: XXXombies #1 by Rick Remender, Kieron Dwyer and Tony Moore. The idea is it’s 1977 and a low rent movie producer has brought together a cast of adult film stars for a weekend shoot in LA… just as a zombie plague hits.
If the trailer for Aliens vs Predator: Requiem is any indication, then they got it right this time!
As I was going through the latest issue of Previews, a new series by Alex Grecian and Riley Rossmo caught my eye. I’ve pre-ordered it and you may want to as well.
Nothing is as it seems in Duane Swierczynski’s first novel Secret Dead Men. Del Farmer appears to be an FBI agent investigating a mob hit. In reality Farmer is a dead reporter trying to discover the reason behind his own murder. Yeah, you read that correctly. Farmer is a dead guy. Well…
…he isn’t just a dead guy.
See, Farmer has the ability to collect souls of the recently departed. In his quest to discover the secrets behind his own murder, Farmer has collected the souls of about a dozen others…
… and they live in his brain hotel.
See, the brain hotel is a mental construct, that appears like a typical hotel and allows the recently departed to have a semblance of life. People in the brain hotel go on about living [although it’s just their memories for the most part] but they can also interact with each other. Sometimes, if their skills are better suited to getting him out of whatever jam he’s in, Farmer even uses them to pilot the body that he currently inhabits…
…and if you’re still with me, then my guess is you’ll enjoy the novel.
I loved Swierczynski’s The Wheelman and The Blonde. And although Secret Dead Men falls a bit short of being as good, we should remember that Secret Dead Men was Swierczynski’s first novel. It’s definitely worth a look.
The piece above is a close-up of a fanzine cover created by Willie Blyberg back in 1978. At that time, Willie was a very prolific and talented fan artist who not only created his own fanzines, but contributed to others as well. Willie’s goal was to break into comics as a professional inker and his dream became a reality.
My favorite Willie Blyberg ink job was over Paul Gulacy on the
Valkyrie: Prisoner of the Past mini-series. I must not have been the only one to enjoy it, because Paul and Willie were nominated for the 1988 Best Art Team Eisner Award. Willie inked a lot of other comics, but then I lost touch with his career.Tonight as I was looking through my copy of Willie’s fanzine from 1978, I wondered where Willie is today. Perhaps someone reading this knows?
I’m a sucker for lists and So here’s my top 25:
Seinfeld (NBC, 1990-98)
Star Trek (NBC, 1966-69)
The Honeymooners (CBS, 1955-56)
The Twilight Zone (CBS, 1959-65)
I Love Lucy (CBS, 1951-61)
The Dick Van Dyke Show (CBS, 1961-66)
Leave it to Beaver (CBS/ABC, 1957-63)
Frasier (NBC, 1993-Present)
Cheers (NBC, 1983-93)
The Andy Griffith Show (CBS, 1960-68)
The Cosby Show (NBC, 1984-92)
The Mary Tyler Moore Show (CBS, 1970-77)
Hill Street Blues (NBC, 1981-87)
Barney Miller (ABC, 1975-82)
The Bob Newhart Show (CBS, 1972-78)
The Carol Burnett Show (CBS, 1967-79)
The Monkees (NBC, 1966-68)
Miami Vice (NBC, 1984-89)
ER (NBC, 1994-Present)
Happy Days (ABC, 1974-84)
The Ed Sullivan Show (CBS, 1948-71)
Alfred Hitchcock Presents (CBS/NBC, 1955-65)
Batman (ABC, 1966-68)
Lost in Space (CBS, 1965-68)
The Rockford Files (NBC, 1974-80)
